Ashford and Simpson

During the late '60s, writer, performer and producers Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson wrote and produced some of Motown's greatest hits, and since the early '70s they've also become successful performers. The son of a construction worker, Ashford grew up in Willow Run, Michigan, where he sang in the church choir as a child. He spent one semester at Eastern Michigan College before dropping out. Against his parents’ wishes, he left home and moved to Harlem with only $57. He worked as a busboy and began attending the White Rock Baptist Church in Harlem, where in 1964 he met Simpson, then 17 years old. She had recently graduated high school and was studying music at Chatham Square School.

They began writing songs together (the first bunch of which they sold for $64). Two years later, when Ray Charles had a hit with their “Let’s Go Get Stoned,” they signed on with Berry Gordy’s Motown organization as staff writers and producers. They created a series of romantic duets, including Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” and “You’re All I Need to Get By,” and Diana Ross’ “Reach Out (and Touch Somebody’s Hand).” While neither of Simpson’s Ashford-produced solo albums sold well, the pair were anxious to concentrate on performing (which Gordy discouraged) and recorded Keep It Comin’ just before leaving Motown in 1973 for Warner Bros. They married in 1974. Their early R&B hit singles included “So, So Satisfied” (#27, 1977) and “Is It Still Good to Ya?” (#12, 1978), and 1979’s “Found a Cure” was their first 45 to make the pop Top 40. They had to wait six years for their next one, “Solid,” which reached #12 in 1985 and topped the R&B chart. Two other R&B hits followed: “Outta the World” (#4, 1985) and “Count Your Blessings” (#4, 1986). Send It, Is It Still Good to Ya? and Stay Free have been certified gold. The duo’s most recent studio album, Been Found, features esteemed poet Maya Angelou on seven of its 11 songs. Ashford and Simpson also continue to tour and work frequently as independent writers and producers; their clients include Diana Ross (The Boss), Gladys Knight and the Pips (About Love), and Whitney Houston (“I’m Every Woman”). The latter song, contained on The Bodyguard soundtrack, hit #5 in 1993.

from The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll (Simon & Schuster, 2001)